Aquitaine/Dordogne Travel Info

History

Dordogne is a department of the Aquitaine region in southwest France within which we find the famous Perigord. Aquitaine also encompasses Bordeaux and the wine country east of Bordeaux. A legend pretends that when God distributed his castles, he started by the Loire Valley. Going far away from there, his bag burst over the Dordogne river and the Perigord region will be eternally thankful for his clumsiness!

During the time of the Romans, the province of Aquitania extended almost as far north as the Loire river. Later on the title duke of Aquitaine was held by the counts of Poitiers form the 10th to the 12th century. The area became an English possession when Eleanor of Aquitaine, daughter of the last duke married the heir to the throne of England in 1152. It remained English until the 15th century when it was annexed by France at the end of the Hundred Year's War. The region of Aquitaine includes the departments of Pyrenees-Atlantiques, Landes, Gironde, Dordogne,and Lot-et-Garonne.

• To visit in Bergerac:
  La Maison des Vins, the headquarters of the Council of Wine makers of the
  Bergerac region.
• The Musée Régional de la Batellerie, contains displays about the rivertrade
  in the area as well as about barrel making and viticulture.
• The Musée du Tabac, unique in France, housed in a 17th-century house on
  rue de l'Ancien-Pont has collections of pipes and tools to illustrate
  tobacco’s history.

In the region - sites to visit:

• Maxange Caves which boast a quite exceptional level and quantity of
  concretion in Le Buisson de Cadouin
• Trémolat, famous for the view from the Belvedere de Rocamadou, a
  viewpoint overlooking one of the lovely river meanders, the Cinglé de
  Trémolat.
• Lalinde, a 13th C. English-fortified town
• The Cave in Font de Gaume, 400-feet long and home to the Cro-Magnon
  man
• National museum of Prehistory in Les Eyzies
  Gouffre de Proumeyssac, also named Cristal Cathedral, in Audix, near Le
  Bugue
• Lascaux II caves in Montignac
• To visit in Sarlat:
• Maison de la Boétie, birthplace of Etienne de la Boetie (in 1530), it is now
  used to host summer exhibitions
• Medieval Cathedral Saint Sacerdos
• Chapelle des Penitents Bleus, remarkable for its pure Romanesque style
• La Roque Gageac, a magnificent village officially classified as one of the
  most beautiful in France
• Château de Castelnaud, perched with hillside on left bank of the Dordogne
• Domme, an example of a medieval fortified town known as a bastide, was
  founded by Philip the Bold in 1281. Graffiti by Knights Templar imprisoned
  here following the dissolution of the order in 1307 may be observed on the
  tower gates.

Geography

The Perigord region corresponds to the region close by the capitale city Perigueux of the department Dordogne. The Perigord, rich and fertile country, is densely forested and crisscrossed by rivers flowing from the plateau of the Massif Central out to the Atlantic. Of these, the Dordogne has carved out through the center a beautiful winding valley of gentle greenery. Many Stone Age relics and caves have been found here dating from around 20,000 years ago. In the village markets, the fruit and vegetables, nuts, and mushrooms of every description bear witness to the region's self-sufficiency in food.

Food/Drink

What good "stuff' can you eat?
A meal in Perigord in a "auberge de campagne" is worth the visit! The Perigord doesn't care too much about butter and prefers by far the goose fat which gives a such particular taste in cuisine. Terrine de Foie gras Tourin (soup make of garlic, goose fat, and vinegar) Confit de canard Magret de canard Gateau aux noix (walnut cake)

What about a drink?
The red wines from Bergerac and the Monbazillac.